Beasley scored all of his points late in the third quarter to help the Heat take an 89-79 lead to the final period. The Pistons got close in the final minute and Josh Harrellson almost tied the game with a long heave that rimmed out with .6 seconds left.

Pistons guard Brandon Jennings was a late scratch from the starting lineup because of wisdom tooth discomfort and the team announced before tipoff that guard Rodney Stuckey will be out indefinitely after breaking the bone in the tip of his right thumb.

The team said Stuckey, who will have surgery on the thumb Friday, smashed it Wednesday in the door jamb of his car.

More than 17,000 turned out in suburban Detroit but some of the loudest cheers came when updates of the Detroit Tigers' performance against Oakland in Game 5 of an American League Division Series were flashed on the videoboards.